


the trees know my name

by orphan_account



Category: Hadestown - Mitchell
Genre: Cross-Posted on Tumblr, Dryad Eurydice, Eurydice being loved unconditionally, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-02
Updated: 2020-01-02
Packaged: 2021-04-21 16:47:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22094464
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: They don't talk about her past.
Relationships: Eurydice/Orpheus (Hadestown)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 41





	the trees know my name

They don’t talk about her past.

It’s more of an unspoken rule than anything else. Eurydice doesn’t like discussing what happened before she met Orpheus, and in turn, Orpheus doesn’t ask. It’s a nice arrangement they have, held together mostly by fear of what will happen if they break it. Or well, Eurydice’s fears of what would happen. Because for all of Orpheus’ initial nervousness, he’s always brave enough where it counts.

The truth is, Eurydice’s not sure what would happen if she revealed her past. The way things are right now, with Orpheus and working in the bar. They’re good. She doesn’t want that to change, doesn’t want to rock the boat. That’s why she doesn’t talk about  _ why  _ the winter affects her so much. How the cold feels like it seeps into her bones and settles there. How she can feel herself cut off from the source of her energy whenever Persephone leaves, taking all the light and air with her. How Eurydice’s getting weaker every day. But she can’t share that. If she tells Orpheus, he’ll just leave like everyone else.

But like all secrets, the truth comes out eventually. It’s a slow day at the bar, but Eurydice’s still tired. She’s always tired nowadays, with the winter coming on so soon. She didn’t have any time to prepare herself, and now she’s paying for it.

Eurydice takes a step, then another. She just needs to make it to the storeroom, where she can lie down for a few minutes. She’s pretty sure Hermes knows about her not-quite secret, but she’s also sure that he’d give her the time regardless. Here, people are kind. They actually care for each other. It’s a little strange to Eurydice.

Eurydice is halfway to the storeroom when she trips. She’s not sure what she trips over. It could be a stray box or a chair or even the air at this point, but it doesn’t matter. She’s falling, and she can already tell she won’t be able to catch herself. Eurydice puts out her hands, hoping that she’ll at least be able to protect her face, but she never hits the ground. Instead, she feels strong arms enclose her, gently helping her sit down on the ground. She opens her eyes, which had closed on instinct, and sees Orpheus beside her, looking worried. Of course, Orpheus will always be there when Eurydice needs him. The thought causes a warm feeling to swell in Eurydice’s chest.

“Are you okay?” Orpheus asks, an arm still wrapped around Eurydice.

“Yeah,” Eurydice says, pasting on a fake smile. She hopes that Orpheus isn’t close enough to see the bags under her eyes, “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” Orpheus’ eyebrows are pinched together. He knows her well enough to tell when she’s lying.

Nevertheless, Eurydice keeps at it. “Completely sure. It was just a dizzy spell.” She knows Orpheus will probably drop it. This is getting into one of those things they don’t discuss.

But Eurydice should’ve known better than to try and predict Orpheus’ actions. If there’s one thing she can count on, it’s that Orpheus will always find a way to surprise her. Instead of just letting the matter lie, he speaks up, voice serious. “Look, I can tell that you’re not well. It’s not just now, this entire winter has been rough. Please tell me what’s wrong,” the look in Orpheus’ eyes is intense, Eurydice wonders how long he’s wanted to talk to her about this, “I just want to help.”

The dam breaks then. All the feelings that Eurydice has been holding back come rushing in, overwhelming her. She feels all her emotions at once, crashing over her like a tidal wave. And then, as soon as they appeared, the feelings are gone, leaving Eurydice just feeling tired. It’s a different tiredness than the one she’s been feeling all winter, deeper somehow. She’s tired of running, tired of hiding. Just tired in general. If she can’t talk to Orpheus, than who  _ can _ she talk to. 

Eurydice takes a deep breath, looking around. The bar is empty by now, all of the patrons have left and Hermes has disappeared somewhere. She closes her eyes and concentrates. She focuses all her energy, what little she has left, on her task. She tries to block out the feeling of Orpheus’ stare. If Eurydice gets distracted, she’s afraid she won’t have the energy to attempt this again.

Finally it happens. Eurydice opens her eyes at Orpheus’ gasp of shock, feeling the newly created flower in her hand. It’s red, like the one Orpheus had given her when they first met, the one she still keeps in her pocket, even though most of the petals have fallen off. Orpheus opens his mouth, then closes it, then opens it again, “Eurydice, you’re- you’re-” For the first time, his words fail him. Eurydice completes his sentence.

“A dryad.” There is only silence between them for a while. Eurydice can almost see the wheels turning in Orpheus’ head as he tries to digest her words. 

“Alright,” Orpheus says finally. Eurydice searches his face for disgust or loathing, (not many people are fond of nymphs), but comes up empty. The only thing she can see is the same love that’s always present when Eurydice’s around, “Is that why you’ve been… sick lately?”

“Yes,” Eurydice says. For a second she considers not elaborating. She waves away the thought, she owes Orpheus the information. He’s clearly been worried about her, “Normally winters aren’t supposed to affect us much. After all, trees survive. But these past few years haven’t been exactly normal.”

Orpheus nods. He is all too aware of the reason for this. That’s what he’s been working on, after all. Finding a way to fix what’s wrong and bring back the correct seasons, to bring back  _ spring _ . “So what can I do?”

“What?” Eurydice is confused. She’d expected Orpheus to be halfway out the door by now.

“To make things easier on you,” Orpheus gives Eurydice a soft smile that melts her heart, “I love you, and I want you to be okay.”

Eurydice feels something in her shift, become lighter. It’s not the first time that Orpheus has said he loves her, but it’s the first time he’s had all the information when saying it. She considers his words and leans in, pressing the flower into his hand. “Just… stay with me. That’s all I want.”

“I will,” Orpheus says, he holds the flower close to him, like it’s something precious, “I promise.”

**Author's Note:**

> i know the title is weird, but i'm currently in the middle of some sadness and can't think of anything better


End file.
